Tinubu: we told you so two years ago…Billionaires haven springing up fast…Afia to the World…plus South East Digest…
Tinubu: we told
you so two years ago
While we wait for the outcome of the now usual legal gymnastics (as both Atiku and Obi have indicated their desire to go to court to overturn that declaration), we thought we should remind you of what we told our readers in the MOM’s Sunday Revue published on August 23, 2020 under the headline, “Forget 2023?”
“Forget 2023?”
“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat” according to that world renowned Chinese general, strategist, and philosopher, Sun Tzu. And as one of my friends would say, “take it to the Bank”, the strategists always win.
Distinguished Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu has proven to be the greatest revelation of this current republic. But it has not been by chance. It has all been due to focus, strategy and hard work. He plans ahead, he takes his time, he picks his fights, when he is beaten, rebounds to an even greater victory. Ask OBJ. Ask all those who met him on his rise and rise.
I cannot claim to be oblivious of the clamour for a President of Nigeria from the South East. Like Eze Igbo Gburugburu and Ikemba Nnewi, Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, said decades ago when he came back from exile, power is not given to anyone on a platter of gold. You have to fight for it. This view was re-echoed by a top Northern politician some weeks ago but like Ojukwu would say, a lot of us would, as a result of “selective amnesia”, blame the Northern gentleman for speaking blasphemy.
Forgive me if I say that the present clamour by ndi Igbo may be like Sun Tzu said: “the noise before defeat”. It happened in 1999 and again in 2003. The year 2023 is not as far as you think. For now, there is no one potential presidential candidate of Igbo extraction that can be said to have a network beyond his State of origin. There is no apparent Ndigbo strategy beyond saying that “it is our turn”.
I stumbled on a commercial yesterday promoting the Tinubu presidential ambition. The commercial credited to a Northern Coalition for Tinubu Presidency has gone viral. Most of those who have seen the commercial deduce that the campaign is hinged on a North-South West pronged attack to clinch the presidency. By extension, the South East and the South South would be for cherry-picking!
Forget emotions. Be real. Except there is an “accident”, Tinubu is waiting to be sworn in as the successor President to PMB.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu admits
Presidential Election was sabotaged
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud has admitted the 2023 Presidential and NASS Polls were sabotaged and vowed to punish staff involved. INEC has vowed to punish its officials, including ad-hoc or collation personnel, who may have been found wanting in the conduct of the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly Elections.
He said; “As we approach the Governorship and State Assembly elections, we must work harder to overcome the challenges experienced in the last election. Nothing else will be acceptable to Nigerians. All staff found to be negligent, whether they are regular or ad hoc officials, including Collation and Returning Officers, must not be involved in forthcoming elections. RECs must also immediately initiate disciplinary action where prima facie evidence of wrongdoing has been established.
Professor Mahmoud Yakubu said arising from last week’s election, the Commission has received reports from its State offices well as complaints and petitions from political parties and candidates. According to him, where infractions of any kind are proven, there will be redress, adding that any action taken by the Commission is without prejudice to the rights of parties and candidates to seek further remedy as provided by law.
On Election Day technology, Yakubu added that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System BVAS will once again be deployed for voter accreditation and result management. He said the deployment of BVAS has gone a long way to sanitise voter accreditation as can be seen from the result of recent elections.
“Since last week, the Commission has intensified the review of the technology to ensure that glitches experienced, particularly with the upload of results are rectified. We are confident that going forward the system will run optimally”, he said.
Over 20 SANs set to prove Obi won Presidential
Election – LP Scribe
The National Secretary of the Labour Party, Umar Farouk has revealed that at least 20 Senior Advocates of Nigeria {SANs} have been engaged to challenge the result of the February 25 presidential and prove that the party’s candidate, Peter Obi won the election. The lawyers drawn from different chambers were being furnished with materials that would be used as evidence in court. Farouk also disclosed that some SANs expressed their interest in joining the legal battle to prove Obi’s case.
Insisting that the Independent National Electoral Commission {INEC} had lost its independence through its alleged collusion with the ruling APC by giving victory to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress {APC} and President-elect, Bola Tinubu, Farouk said the LP’s hope was vested in the judiciary to do the needful.
The Labour Party scribe
said: “We have more than 20 SANs that are willing to participate and offer
their services for the renewal and emergence of a new Nigeria. As I am talking
to you, our lawyers are working on it. “But
this is not something we can discuss on the pages of a newspaper. All I can
tell you is that we have started ‘trekking’ to the court,” he said.
FG keeps mum on Supreme Court judgment on Naira
redesign policy
The Federal Government is yet to react to the judgment of the Supreme Court revalidating the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes until December 31, 2023.
In a judgment last Friday,
the apex court had ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to allow both the
old naira notes and the new ones to circulate side by side till the end of the
year.
In a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim on behalf of the seven-member panel of Justices of the court, the court voided and set aside all the directives issued by President Muhammadu Buhari in respect of the naira re-design and circulation on grounds of illegalities and abuse of executive powers.
The court held that the President’s demonization directive is inconsistent with the law’s provisions.
The apex court took a swipe at President Buhari for disobeying its interim order of February 8 to the effect that the old naira notes of N200, N500 and N1000 denominations be allowed to be in circulation. Justice Agim held that the President exhibited and took the disobedience to the highest peak with his broadcast of February 16, allowing only the N200 notes. The court held that the rule of law in which the democracy of the country is founded will become a misery if the President refused to obey the court’s order.
President Buhari hails CACOVID for donating 350
Security Vehicles
As the private sector-led Coalition against Covid-19 (CACOVID) winds down, President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the initiative of private sector operators, saying the contributions he has received from the Coalition so far has elevated his status among other Presidents of the world.
The President, who spoke in Abuja over the weekend while receiving a parting donation of N12 billion security equipment for the Military and the Nigeria Police from the leadership of CACOVID said his government had received so much support from the private sector in addressing social ills in the country.
Items handed over to the President by the Coalition members included 100 Tata 14 ton Troop carriers, 100 Tata 12 ton Troop carriers, 86 Toyota pick-up trucks, 64 Nissan Navara pick-up trucks with their spare parts, 13,000 helmets as well as 13,000 bullet proof vests.
It would be recalled that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had also rated CACOVID as the third largest contributor in the world to the fight against Covid-19 virus, the outbreak of which in 2020 brought the world to its knees.
Afia TV takes Igboland to the World
Afia TV, a television station based in Enugu, Enugu State, has become the first Igbo television station on DSTV and GoTV since 1996. See some members of the team that makes the station thick:
Anambra Billionaires haven springing up fast
Less than a month ago we told our readers that the Anambra State Government had signed n MOU with the Rainbow Heritage Project Services Limited for the establishment of a “Billionaires’ estate” in Awka as part of Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s dream of a livable and prosperous homeland.
That estate, The Golf Residency, Awka, is fast taking off. We gathered that the company commenced site clearing and standard penetration tests on the 110 hectares of land last week. Of the 22 soil test points planned, four were completed last week.
We also gather that the Company plans to conclude all initial projects preparations including the site clearing and various other tests before the end of March 2023. Building construction is expected to start from April 2023.
(A digest of latest reports on the Economy, Industry,
Politics, Sports, and developments around the South East of Nigeria)
ABIA STATE
NLC suspends strike in Abia as Govt agrees to tackle
Salary, Pension Arrears
Five days after workers in Abia State embarked on strike, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday suspended the industrial action following an agreement between the organised labour and the Abia State government.
The national leadership of NLC had declared industrial action against Abia State government on February 28, 2023 after the expiration of 14-day ultimatum issued to Governor Okezie Ikpeazu to offset arrears of workers’ salaries and pensioners retirement benefits. With the effect of the strike biting hard on Abia residents, especially the attendant power outage, the government was compelled to negotiate with the organised labour to end the industrial action.
At a news conference the parties announced their agreement as outlined in a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the end of negotiations.
The government team was headed by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Chris Ezem, while the NLC delegation was led by the Assistant General Secretary, Chris Onyeka.
The SSG said that the government had found itself in a situation where workers had embarked on strike in the last few days, adding that “we engaged extensively and exhaustively with NLC” in order to restore industrial harmony.
He pledged that the government would remain resolute in implementing the agreement reached with the organised labour and urged workers to have hope and confidence in the government’s commitment to their welfare.
Onyeka on his part said that the national leadership of NLC “heard the cries of our people in Abia” and decided to come to their rescue, adding that it is inhuman for the Abia government to treat workers like inconsequential people”.
Onyeka said that the two parties negotiated on “a basket of issues” and although “we didn’t get all we wanted” however enough progress has been made to warrant the suspension of the strike action.
ANAMBRA STATE
Soludo urges Anambra residents to vote APGA candidates
in State Assembly Elections
Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra has appealed to people of the State to vote for candidates of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the upcoming March 11, 2023 State House of Assembly elections. He said voting for APGA candidates during the election, would help him sustain the tempo of development across the 21 local government areas of the State.
Soludo, made the appeal through his Chief Press Secretary, Comrade Christian Aburime, while speaking to Journalists in Awka, on Friday, in preparation ahead of next Saturday’s House of Assembly election in the State.
The Governor said the best way for the people to support his administration’s development strides was for them to massively vote the candidates of APGA in the election.
He noted that massive support for APGA’s candidates will enable him to work and attract more dividends of democracy to the State.
Greetings Mike,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this edition.
I hope and pray that peace would be restored to the Nigerian Political landscape as soon as possible.